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Drug seizures saw 100% jump even in lockdown.

The recovery of smuggled liquor dropped by 60% compared to 2019.
While according to Gurgaon police, the recovery of Drugs particularly Marijuana increased by 100%.

Officials have connected this to a rise in demand of such drugs at a time when alcohol stores were shut because of pandemic.

Between January and June in 2019, Gurgaon police had seized around 203 kg of drugs including 188 kg Marijuana.

And now this year police had recovered 405 kg of drugs including 334 kg of Marijuana.

Police official said that most of the trading for the expensive more refined drugs happens at nightclubs which were shut because of lockdown.

In past two months a huge amount of drugs, including a entire truck loaded with marijuana was recovered in the neighbouring of Mewat .

Notably, most of those engaged in sale of marijuana are slum dwellers, street vendors.
” They do not sell drugs to strangers and one needs to be referred by regular client”, said officer.

“Marijuana is smuggled into Delhi-NCR from Odisha, Rajasthan, West Bengal and eastern UP,” said a senior police officer, adding that the drug is then supplied to retailers in small parcels weighing 1 kg or 2 kg each, and from them, it reached the individual consumer in even smaller packets of 5 gm and 10 gm.

According to times of India, ACP (crime) Preet Pal Sangwan said crime units continuously work to track and arrest drug peddlers. In the last 24 hours, crime units have arrested three different persons in three different cases of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act— one from Hans Enclave with 200 grams of marijuana, one from Arjun Nagar with 65 grams of charas and another from Sector 84 with 1.1 kg of marijuana.
“We arrest drug peddlers almost on a daily basis,” Sangwan said, adding that mostly these people are the last in the supply chain. He added they try to disrupt the entire chain.
But cops admit that disrupting supply completely is very challenging, mainly because of high demand and guaranteed, handsome reward at every point of the chain. “People are ready to take risks to make easy money through drug trade, and there are numerous people who are ready to pay for it,” said a police officer.

Happy Birthday Bhumi Pednekar: 5 roles that prove she is the most versatile actress

Bollywood actor Bhumi Pednekar has proved her mettle in the industry ever since her debut in critically acclaimed film Dum Laga Ke Haisha. From being a casting director to being an actor, Bhumi has had the most unconventional journey in Bollywood. Her versatility and talent have bagged her some of the most influential roles that Indian Cinema has witnessed in recent years.

As the talented actress celebrates her birthday today, let’s have a look at her glorious career

Dum Laga ke Haisha:

Can we imagine any actress other than Bhumi playing an overweight bride? The answer is no because she nailed the character to the toe. Also, she gained as much as 30 kilos for the role that might frighten size zero actresses we usually see on screen. It was a risk for a debutante, but Bhumi chose to do so and proved that she is here to stay. The movie, featuring Ayushmann Khurrana as her under confident husband, received critical appreciation.

Sonchiriya:

Bhumi played the role of a Thakur woman on the run in Abhishek Chaubey’s Sonchiriya. In a film starring the likes of Manoj Bajpayee and Sushant Singh Rajput, Bhumi managed to garner heaps of praises for her aptly performed minor role.

Saand Ki Aankh:

Saand Ki Aankh saw Bhumi playing role of a Jaat grandmother who takes up shooting at a crucial age of her life. With wrinkled skin and silver hair, Bhumi grabbed eyeballs for her flexibility to mold herself into the character of shooter dadi.

Toilet Ek Prem Katha:

While it may come as a surprise to many, Bhumi is actually born and brought up in Mumbai. Without an ounce of experience of rural India, she did a commendable job in playing a village woman in Toilet Ek Prem Katha. Her cheap sari, ghunghat, and pallu went perfectly with the role and the film turned out to be a blockbuster at the box office.

Bala:

In Ayushmann Khurrana starrer Bala, Bhumi played the role of a girl dozen shades darker than her original skin tone. Breaking all the stereotypes, Bhumi once again ditched the conventional notion of ‘fair and lovely.’

In her demi-decade-old career, Bhumi has already set a unique benchmark for herself. And as the time passes, she continues to bring more inspiring strong women’s stories to the silver screen. Up next, Bhumi will be seen in the much-anticipated film ‘Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare’ which is a story of two women on their quest to freedom.

We wish Bhumi all the best for all her future endeavors!

Chirag Paswan supports the opposition in attacking Bihar Government on road collapse.

LJP President, Chirag Paswan on Thursday supported the opposition in attacking the ruling government over the collapse of a road in floods, saying it raises questions on the claim of “zero corruption” and demands action against the “guilty”. 

An approach road for a new connecting Gopalganj to East Champaran in Bihar, opened only last month, was washed away by the Gandak river, which is in spate, leaving the opposition and the ruling dispensation in the state at each other’s throats.

The 1.44-km-long bridge, built at a cost of Rs 263.47 crores​, reduced the distance between Gopalganj, Saran and East Champaran districts by 45 km.

“Part of a bridge built at the cost of Rs 264 crore has collapsed today. Any work done with public money should be carried out maintaining quality standards. Incidents like this raise questions in the public eye over zero corruption. The LJP demands a high-level probe to punish the guilty quickly,” Tejashwi Yadav tweeted.

Tejashwi Yadav demanded resignation of Kumar, who had inaugurated the Sattarghat bridge on June 16.

The Bihar government, however, quickly came out with a clarification that it was not the bridge itself that had collapsed.

Rabri Devi also tweeted:

Bollywood: Desi Girl turns 38, today.

“You can be an absolute woman and also be smart and tough and not lose your femininity. “

‘Desi girl’ also the winner of Miss World 2000 pageant, Priyanka Chopra Jones turned 38 today, she is an Indian actress and singer.

She the recipient of numerous awards such as National Film Award, 5 Filmfare awards including Padmashree and many more.

The actress has been named in Time’s100 most influential people, also India’s highest-paid and most popular entertainers.

she made her debut with 2002 Tamil film Thamizhan, in the same year she made a debut in Bollywood in the film ‘The Hero’ which is a Spy Thriller. Not just Bollywood, she overwhelmed her performance in shows ‘Quantico’ and other Hollywood project.

Also working as UNICEF goodwill ambassador for child right, she is an inspiration for millions.

Priyanka Chopra will next be seen in Netflix’s adaptation of ‘The White Tigerco’-starring Rajkumar Rao. 

Priyanka Chopra married Nick Jonas on December 1, in the presence of their closest friends and family. The lovebirds got married as per Hindu and Christain traditions. 

Fangirl Hina Khan shares A Throwback:

Fans shower with birthday wishes:

https://twitter.com/NpLegacy/status/1284340390448058373?s=19

Coronavirus vaccine: Bharat Biotech begins first phase human trial on 375 volunteers

New Delhi: Human clinical trials for Covaxin, India’s first potential indegenous vaccine for the novel coronavirus, have been initiated on 375 volunteers across the country. The vaccine is developed by Bharat Biotech International Limited(BBIL) along with India Council of Medical Research(ICMR) and National Institute of Virology(NIV).

Covaxin is an ”inactivated” vaccine, which is developed using the particles of the covid-19 virus that were killed, making them unable to infect further. Injecting definite doses of these particles transferred from asymptomatic patients helps in building antibodies against the dead virus, the vaccine manufacturer said.

During the first phase of the trial, it will be checked whether or whether not the people who have been vaccinated show adverese effect in their body.

Covaxin has already underwent successful pre-clinical testing on animals such as guniea pigs and mice to see the efficacy and safety before initiating human trials.

According to the reports, twelve hospitals in different parts of the country have begun the testing process.

The hospitals where the vaccine trails have kick started are — All India Institute of Medical Sceinces(AIIMS) Delhi, AIIMS Patna, Jeevan Rekha Hospital in Belgum, Gillurkar Multispeciality Hospital in Nagpur, Rana Hospital in Gorakhpur, King George Hospital in Vishakhapatnam, SRM Hospital in Chennai, Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences in Hyderabad Kalinga Hospital in Bhubaneshwar, Prakhar Hospital in Kanupur and a hospital in Goa.

Bharat Biotech has envisaged to launch the vaccine for public health use by 15th August after completing all the mandatory clinical trials. The company is a worldwide supplier of four billion doses of infections like rotavirus, hepatitis, zika, Japanese encephalitis and others.

Besides covaxin, six more vaccines for coronavirus that has taken hundreds of thousands of lives have been developed across the country.

Sourav Ganguly’s brother tested positive for coronavirus.

Sourav Ganguly will undergo 2 COVID-19 tests.
Sourav Ganguly will undergo 2 COVID-19 tests

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly is in-home quarantine for 14 days after his brother Snehashish Ganguly tested positive for COVID-19. Last month Snehashish’s wife and in-laws also tested positive for the virus.

Snehashish tested in a private pathology center and within the next two days, hence, he will undergo one more test. This also means the entire family is under quarantine mode for a certain number of days from now. Officially, the quarantine duration is of 14 days but Snehashish is tested positive after a month of his wife’s positive report with the virus. As of now, Ganguly’s brother had shifted to the family’s ancestral house.

“My brother visits our factories every-day and he is more at risk,” Sourav Ganguly had stated.

“He was suffering from fever for the last few days and his test reports came positive today. He is now in Belle Vue Hospital,” by CAB officials.

“The reports arrived late in the evening. As per health protocols, even the board President is in-home quarantine for a stipulated period,” BCCI source.

Snehashish Ganguly didn’t followed the home quarantine procedure

On 20th June after the positive report of Snehashish’s wife, he released a statement and he claimed to be fit and working in his office every day. He overlapped and unfollowed the home quarantine protocol. The BCCI president hasn’t spoken anything regarding the matter as of now.

Temporary number-plates are illegal from now

The plates displaying registration numbers if regional languages or small letters will be deemed illegal.
The plates displaying registration numbers if regional languages or small letters will be deemed illegal.

Driving a new vehicle with a temporary number plate is now illegal. The transport minister on Wednesday notified a comprehensive norm for color code for alphanumeric details and for the background portion used for displaying the registration number of 11 categories of vehicles. In India, there is a big market for fake and unique number plates and vehicle owners take pride in having a very unique number plate.

These plates, often made of paper, are usually valid for 30 to 40 days, or until your actual license plates arrive. In most instances, when you purchase a new car from a dealer they take care of issuing you temporary license plates. However, if you purchase a car from a private individual, you may need to get the plates yourself from your local Department of Motor Vehicles. 

What does the authorities said?

“The guidelines are to rectify the drawbacks in the chapter on the assignment of registration mark on vehicles for various States and Union Territories at a glimpse, through tabulation of items so that it enunciates the color of the alpha numerals and the background of the registration plate of different class and category of vehicles. The cameras with number plate readers cannot read those which don’t conform to the norms. of all number plates are very essential for the enforcement of rules,” said Anil Chikara, Delhi transport department official specializing in motor vehicle licensing.

The plates displaying registration numbers if regional languages or small letters will be deemed illegal. “Even VIP registration numbers auctioned by states must comply with the norms,” said an official. For example, in the case of all motor vehicles except two and three-wheelers, the height, thickness, and space have been specified.

Know what PM Modi said while addressing United Nations at the high-level segment of its Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) 2020

Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the United Nations at the high-level segment of its Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), his first since India was elected as a non-permanent member of the powerful Security Council in June.

In his 15-minute virtual address around the theme ‘multilateralism’, PM talked about various initiatives by the Indian government to fight COVID-19 and towards ensuring an all-inclusive development. 

“This year we celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. It is an occasion to recognise the UN’s many contributions to human progress. It is also an opportunity to assess the UN’s role and relevance in today’s World, and to shape a better future for it”, said PM Modi in his adress.

The Prime Minister was joined by his Norwegian counterpart Erna Solberg as well as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

On June 17, with 184 votes out of the total 192 polled, India won the UN non-permanent seat for the eighth time and has emerged as the single-endorsed candidate from the Asian Pacific regional group.

The UNSC comprises 15 members including 10 non-permanent and 5 permanent members.

Modi said, In our joint fight against COVID, we have extended medical and other assistance to over 150 countries.”

“Our motto is ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas, Sabka Vishwas’ – meaning ‘Together, for everyone’s growth, with everyone’s trust’. This resonates with the core SDG principle of leaving no one behind,” he added.

Jadhav and Indian officials were played yet again by Pakistan

Pakistan fixed Jadhav for subversive activities in Pakistan.
Pakistan fixed Jadhav for subversive activities in Pakistan.

Earlier Pakistan claimed the spying charges on the Kulbhushan Jadhav who was the former Indian Navy officer. The Ministry of External Affairs said Indian consular officers were denied for the unimpeded access to Kulbhushan Jadhav. In 2016, Pakistan fixed Jadhav for subversive activities in Pakistan. The neighboring government betrayed and cheated the Indian officials in terms of consular access to this case.


“On the contrary, Pakistani officials with an intimidating demeanor were present nearby of Jadhav and Consular Officers despite the protests of the Indian side. Accordingly, Jadhav made himself visible under stress and to the consular officers,” said the MEA.

Pakistan Officials recorded the entire conversation


In meanwhile MEA officers also claimed that Pakistan recorded the entire conversation. We saw a camera over there which implied the recording of the entire conversation,” said MEA. The arrangements did not permit a free conversation between them,” said the Indian officials.

Indian administration could not engage Kulbhashan Jadhav on his legal rights yet again. The authorities concluded that consular access was neither meaningful nor credible. Pakistani government played with the sentiments of India yet again. Former navy officer deserves justice and a proper trial.


The Ministry of External Affairs also apprised Jadhav’s family about these developments. Pakistan’s approach is disgraceful and the case seems to follow a never-ending tale. Further, Ahmed Irfan, the Additional Attorney General of Pakistan and Zahid Hafeez the Foreign Ministry’s Director-General said: “Jadhav has refused to file an appeal against his conviction in military court.” As of now, Pakistan is hiding something, and they passed the false statements due respect to this case.

Rajasthan Political Crisis Updates|July 17, 2020

The hearing of the petition of Sachin Pilot faction was held in the High Court on Friday amid political uproar in Rajasthan. After hearing the arguments of both the sides, the High Court decided to continue the hearing. After this, the High Court adjourned the hearing till 10 am on Monday.

Court also directed the state Assembly Speaker not to take any action on the rebel MLAs till Tuesday 5.30 pm.

Sacked Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, who boasts of 18 MLAs in his camp, yesterday moved the high court, challenging notices from the Rajasthan Speaker over a Congress move to disqualify them from the state assembly.

Today, the Congress suspended two of the rebels alleging that they had been caught on tape conspiring with the BJP against their own government. The Congress also named Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who has called the audio “fake”. Two police cases were filed on the allegations.

In recent interview, Mr. Pilot said that he has “genuine grievances” with the Ashok Gehlot government, and those are yet to be resolved.

Also read:

Middle-class Indians shift focus from education and marriage to health amid coronavirus pandemic

The ongoing coronavirus outbreak has changed our lives in many unprecedented ways. As the infection continues to spread, it has really become unpredictable how our tomorrow will turn out to be. The only way to keep your life going on is by having a healthy lifestyle and building your immunity to fight virus.

Ever since the introduction to the virus, middle-class Indian households have started operating differently. Earlier, priority of every common household in India used to be savings for education and marriage, but now the focus has shifted to health expenditure. Many people, who dreamt of buying a new house, car or anything for that matter, have postponed their plans for a next few year in the wake of ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The novel coronavirus has dramatically affected metro cities and shows no signs of stopping. With many business being suspended, people are facing job crisis which has caused a threat to stable income. As the contagion spreads, Indian are still trying to figure out how best to deal with it even after months of living under this constant threat.

According to a report published in a leading portal, marriage rates among the middle class have declined significantly while investements in medical emergencies have rapidly increased. Amid the crisis, people are taking up health insurance option seriously that was previously neglected by the middle-class Indian.
The report also suggested that demand for term life insurance also saw a surge which takes care of the fear of loss of the breadwinner.

While the tally on Friday reached 1 million coronavirus cases, most parts of the country have started unlock phase to curb falling economy. However, educational institutes, including schools and colleges have strictly been ordered to remain shut.

So it is understandable that education is clearly not the priority of the hour and neither is marriage, but health definitely is. Since no one is immune to the virus, the only way to prepare yourself for the worst is by taking care of your health.

Sunny Leone resumes shooting amid the coronavirus outbreak with added precautions

Sunny Leone is currently practicing social distancing amid coronavirus outbreak. The actress along with her husband Daniel Weber and their three kids — Noah, Usher and Nisha flew to Los Angeles in May to be with her in-laws during the pandemic.

Sunny keeps her fans updated about her activities on social media. On Friday, the actress revealed that she has resumed work and shared a picture from one of her dance shoots. In the picture, Sunny can be seen sporting a red and blue ghagra choli with the background dancers performing in masks.

Sharing the picture, she wrote: “Almost time to dance!! hehehe.”

View this post on Instagram

Almost time to dance!! Hehehe

A post shared by Sunny Leone (@sunnyleone) on

Earlier, Sunny had shared another picture from the shoots in which she could be seen donning a silver dress while background dancers performed with masks on.

View this post on Instagram

Who says work can’t be fun!!?!!

A post shared by Sunny Leone (@sunnyleone) on

In an interaction with a web portal, Sunny revealed that necessary precautions were taken during the shoot. When asked about how she managed to practice social distancing while shooting, Sunny said: “We were very good. I made sure that everybody had proper masks and the stuido itself had very strict guidlines. All the people were really safe and everyone wore the mask entire time.”

“Everyone was wearing masks. No one was allowed to enter without wearing one. There were only allowed a certain amount of people in the studio. We had sanitizing stations and everything was clean. Everyone was very cooperative about everything that was going on, which is great,” she had added.

Sunny often shares adorable pictures of her children on Instagram. Recently, Sunny wrote a heartfelt message for her daughter Nisha Weber whom the couple adopted three-years ago. She posted some pictures with her family and wrote: “3yrs ago you chose us…us to be your mama & papa…to trust us to take care of you…to show us what real love is…the second I laid eyes on you, I knew you were my daughter”Today I look at you and I see a glimpse of the strong independent woman you will become. After this year I know you will have many questions but I will be there every step of the way while we figure it out together. I love you Nisha and Happy “Gotcha” Day. You are the light in our lives and the reason for all our joy everyday!!”

Meanwhile, on the film front, she will next be seen in Koka Kola and Veeramahadevi.

Netflix India reveals an entertaining line-up of 17 upcoming originals, check them out

Netflix has revealed an exclusive line-up of 17 original stories, including six new films and two new web series. From romantic comedies to thrillers to masala entertainers, the streaming giant has come up with a diverse collection of different genres that will keep binge-watchers entertained during this quarantine season.

As the coronavirus outbreak continues to outgrow, we have no clue when the conventional theatre release will be possible for Indian cinema. Considering this, filmmakers are eyeing OTT platforms, and in last few months, we have seen streaming portals purchasing mega budget films.

As quarantine period and work from home continues, we have a lot of time in hand to binge watch. And Netflix India’s announcement at a time like this, holds much more significance than ever before.

Monika Shergill, VP-Content, Netflix India, said: “We are excited to share our lineup of stories across formats and multiple genres. We know our members have unique tastes, moods and needs – sometimes, they want to lean back and watch a delightful comedy, and at other times, they want a pulse-pounding thriller that brings them to the edge of their seats. We are so proud to bring these diverse stories created by acclaimed and emerging storytellers and producing partners. Together with the finest stories from around the world and our rapidly growing selection of licensed titles, we want to give our members something to discover and love on Netflix every day.”

Following are some Netflix originals that are scheduled to be streaming in “coming months”:

Ludo:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsLevupOS_/

Featuring Abhishek A Bachchan, Rajkummar Rao, Aditya Roy Kapur, Fatima Sana Sheikh, Sanya Tripathi, Pankaj Tripathi, and Pearle Maaney, Ludo is a dark comedy which has been helmed by Anurag Basu.

Torbaaz:

Torbaaz starring Sanjay Dutt and Nargis Fakhri is an emotional story of transformation.

Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare:

Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakre Sitare is the most-anticipated film of the year. It is a story of two cousins who are on a journey to achieve freedom. The film stars Konkona SenSharma and Bhumi Pednekar in lead roles.

Ginny Weds Sunny:

Light hearted Romantic comedy, Ginny Weds Sunny features Yami Gautam and Vikrant Massey in lead roles.

Bombay Rose:

Award winning animated film Bombay Rose will also be streaming on Netflix in coming months.

Serious Men:

Serious Men is a witty drama based on Manu Joseph’s novel. It stars Nawazudding Siddiqui, Nassar, and Shweta Basu Prasad in lead roles.

Tribhanga – Tedhi Medhi Crazy:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsItk8FaDN/

Tribhanga – Tedhi Medhi Crazy is a dysfunctional family drama which features Kajol, Tanvi Azmi and Mithila Palkar in lead roles.

Kaali Khuhi:

The film marks return of Sanjeeda Sheikh on screen after a long time. Kaali Khuhi is a horror film set in the village of Punjab and also features Shabana Azmi, Satyadeep Mishra and Riva Arora in pivotal roles.

Class of ’83:

Class of ’83 starring Bobby Deol, Annup Sonni, Bhupendra Jadawat, and Hitesh Bhojaraj is an intense police drama.

Gunjan Saxena The Kargil Girl:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsI_mpAHL9/

Based on the life of first female IAF pilot Gunjan Saxena, the film stars Janhvi Kapoor in the lead role. The film will feature chronicles of Gunjan’s life who was India’s first woman Air Force officer to go to war.

AK vs AK:

AK vs AK, starring Anurag Kashyap and Anil Kapoor, is a unqiue dark comedy.

Mismatched:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsIR4JhphB/

Mismatched is one of the two exciting new series which features Rohit Saraf and Prajakta Koli in lead roles. It is based in Sandhya Menon’s book ‘When Dimple Met Rishi.’

A Suitable Boy:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsIn4PDynm/

An intense drama featuring Tabu, Ishaan Khatter, Tanya Maniktala, Rasika Duggal, and Ram Kapoor in lead roles, ‘A Suitable Boy’ is based on the Vikram Seth’s novel of the same name.

Masaba Masaba:

Masaba Masaba is an upcoming sereis which stars Neena Gupta and her daughter Masaba Gupta along with Neil Bhoopalam.

Bombay Begums:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsItd4Bm2R/

Bomabu Begums is a contemporary drama which features Pooja Bhatt, Amruta Subhash, Shahana Goswami, Plabita Borthakur and Aadhya Anand.

Bhaag Beannie Bhhag:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCsI4IDpKm0/

Swara Bhasker will essay the role of a stand-up comic in the upcoming series Bhaag Beanie Bhaag wherein she will capturing the complexities of being a female comedian in India.

Coronavirus vaccine update: Oxford University’s potential vaccine shows promising results

Amid all the tension in the wake of coronavirus crisis, University of Oxford’s potential Covid-19 vaccine has raised hopes as early trials have shown some positive results. Researchers at Oxford have discovered that their search for a coronavirus vaccine can might provide “double protection” against the novel virus, according to media reports in UK.

The vaccine has been licensed by AstraZenca and is already in large scale Phase 3rd human trials. Blood samples taken from a group UK volunteers during early trails, who were given a dose of the vaccine, showed that it can stimulate the body to provide antibodies as well as “Killer T-cells”. However, the developers have still not submitted the concluded report of the trails which would show whether it is safe or not.

It has been reported that developers saw some positive immune response of the vaccine in trails so far and will be publishing Phase 1 result by the end of July.

The vaccine has been supported the UK government and is probably in the most advanced stage as per the development.

According to the information received until now, the Oxford vaccine has shown the most promising results so far as it can produce killer T-cells as well as antibodies. While antibodies may fade away within months, T-cells circulation remains in the body for years.

AstraZeneca, meanwhile, has signed agreements with governments across the globe to supply the vaccine once it succeeds in its purpose.

The potential vaccine is one of the 100 vaccines being developed and tested around the world to stop the Covid-19 pandemic, which has taken away hundreds of thousands lives worldwide.

Home sales- eight major cities in India, have faced a vast decline

“After two years of steady demand, the home sales in top eight cities of India declined by a significant 54% YoY to a decadal low of 59,538 units during H1 2020 with sales mostly concentrated in the first quarter of calendar year,” the report said.

In India eight major cities have faced a vast decline in the first six months of year, low in housing unit sales and Knight Frank India report said.

On the office market front, transactions in the first half of 2020 fell by a massive 37 percent YoY to 17.2 million sq ft — the steepest fall in a decade. New completions this year fell by 27 percent YoY, the Knight Frank India’s flagship half-yearly report ‘India Real Estate’ said.

The groundbreaking interruption caused by on-going pandemic caused by Coronavirus, stalled the economy in Q2.

The lockdown resulted in a complete shutdown of all activity in the real estate industry and caused sales to fall a massive 84 per cent year-on-year to 9,632 units in Q2 while sales of 49,905 units were reported in Q1.
The number of new home launches recorded in Q1 was 54,905 units whereas the number saw a sharp drop to 5,584 units in Q2.

NCR, Chennai and Hydrabad are near zero sales during this period.

Office transactions declined 37% year-on-year—the steepest in a decade—to 17.2 million sqft in the first half of the year, the report said. New completions were lower by 27% over the previous year at 17.3 million sqft.

Yet, the weighted average rental for the eight cities grew 4% year-on-year to Rs 83 per sq ft/ month.